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Explain the mole concept as you would to a capable student, in 3-4 sentences.

The mole is a counting unit for atoms and molecules, just like a dozen is a counting unit for eggs—except instead of 12, one mole equals 6.02 × 10²³ particles (Avogadro's number). This huge number was chosen so that one mole of any substance has a mass in grams equal to its atomic or molecular mass in amu, making calculations much easier. For example, one mole of carbon atoms weighs exactly 12 grams and contains 6.02 × 10²³ atoms, while one mole of water molecules weighs 18 grams and contains that same number of molecules. This lets us bridge the gap between the atomic scale and the laboratory scale we can actually measure.